Carmelo Anthony was selected with the third overall pick by the Denver Nuggets in the 2003 NBA Draft. He averaged 21 points in his rookie season, finishing as runner-up for Rookie of the Year to LeBron James. About midway through his second season in 2004-05, George Karl joined the team as head coach.
The two were together until past the midway point of the 2010-11 season, when Anthony was traded from the Nuggets to the New York Knicks. It was a bit of a messy exit for Anthony. It was evident to all that he wanted no part of staying with Denver. The most success that the duo had was in the 2008-09 season when the Nuggets lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Denver did reach the playoffs in each of the other seasons that the two were together, but they were eliminated in the first round in all of them.
Carmelo Anthony Vs. George Karl: The Beef That Continues to Live On
Melo’s Comments on his Podcast
On his podcast “7PM in Brooklyn”, the 39-year-old Anthony spoke of his first encounter with Karl. The Nuggets were set to play the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that Karl previously coached, but he was fired after the 2002-03 season.
Anthony stated that from the get-go, Karl said he was ‘overrated’ (Anthony was just in his second season at the time) and that the Nuggets would use him similarly to how the Seattle SuperSonics used Detlef Schrempf.
Karl Claps Back
Karl, who previously wrote a book with disparaging remarks about Anthony and other players, took to X to respond.
Hey @carmeloanthony let’s not do this. You’re telling stories that are 20 years old. Let’s move fwd 💪
And u were overrated and u wish your game was as efficient as Detlef’s. 😆
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) February 16, 2024
Anthony responded with a tweet with crying laughing emojis, but the 72-year-old Karl wasn’t done.
Happy bday to the champ, the ultimate team guy and the greatest player to wear #15 in Denver hoops history. pic.twitter.com/ki5acesu1q
— George Karl (@CoachKarl22) February 19, 2024
Of course, #15 was previously worn by Carmelo Anthony with the Nuggets. On the bottom of Karl’s tweet, it can be seen that Anthony was tagged in the tweet.
Carmelo Previously Spoke on the Nuggets Giving the Joker #15
On one of his previous podcasts, Anthony discussed being disrespected by Denver when they gave Nikola Jokic his old number. The number was also worn by Anthony Randolph after Anthony and before Jokic, but he didn’t mention that. Karl was likely aware of this and believed it would get under Anthony’s skin to tag him.
Karl was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2022 after a 27-year career as a head coach. In the future, Anthony will likely be inducted on his first ballot (2026). It is safe to say that Karl will not be the Hall of Fame presenter for Anthony when the day comes for him to be enshrined.
